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December 2014 Walnut Burl

Vol. 36 A Publication Of The Duneland Woodcarvers December 2014

Merry Christmas To All

News Flash

Well hear we go again. Everything I told you about where and when the Christmas Party was going to be held, is all a bunch of Malarkey. It was decided after I had published that little morsel of news ,that the date and place of the party was changed. Due to the fact that most of the club members are located closer to the Building at Woodland Park ( Blue Spruce Room) (Where our Tues. Meetings are held. ) It was decided to have the Christmas Party there. The day has also been changed to December 14thwhich is on a Sunday instead of on a Saturday. For now everything else I told you stays the same. Party times will be between 1PM and 6pm. Please bring a food dish you would like to share ( same as always) . Plus there will be a grab bag sharing of a carving that you have done or a gift that is carving related. Kathy will see to it that you don’t receive back the gift you bring. If you do bring a carving make sure that you date it and initial it. Several of the newer carvers told me that they didn’t think they were accomplished enough to bring a carving that they were proud of. I have a few carvings that wouldn’t be considered a Blue Ribbon winner, but I’m still proud to have received them. Some of those contributor’s s are no longer with us . All are on display at my house and every time I look at them they bring back some great memories. So, Please bring a carving to the party if you can. See you all there.

Members Phone and Email Changes

If you have made any changes to any of the information that we have on you please notify either Bruce Johnston or Me. I tried to get hold of a member the other day only to find his Email address had been changed. When I then tried to call him I found out that his phone number had also been changed. That’s when frustration set in. Sh%t !!

A Very Sweet Lady Is Gone

Most of you that are members of the South Suburban Chislers won’t recognize this name. Mary Jean Kucsera. If it weren’t for Mary Jean and her son in law Marvin Jacobs I wouldn’t have become a woodcarver. For those who knew her, they remember how much she loved Roses of all kinds. She carved them on almost every kind of wood you can imagine. She was very good at it. Marvin and I spent many, many nights in her basement . Marvin had never tried to teach anyone before and I probably was a real challenge for him. Mary Jean would make rough outs for Marvin to use to teach me with. She always would sit by me and tell me how good I was becoming( a lot of baloney). She always inspired me. This is why I love our club. Everyone acts like the club is a family affair. Us old Guys and Gals try to help out all the new carvers just like we were helped. Only because of her is why I’m here. R.I.P. Mary Jean Oct. 28th 2014

Guess What Time It Is

I imagine you have probably guessed. For those that haven’t next month (January) it will be time to renew your membership. Just giving you a little advance notice . Don’t worry I will remind you again for several months. Your Dues are $20 dollars a year and help the club to pay for the printing and mailing of the news letter every month. There have several members that have already paid including myself. I would rather pay right away than have it hanging over my head till I do. You can send your dues to Bruce Johnston at 9731 Johnson St. Crown Point, IN. 46307. Bruce is usually at the Tuesday Meetings so you can pay him there. I know it is painful to have to read ,but it is necessary, believe me. Thanks to all.

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Very Sad News

Another one of the jobs that I have to perform and tears me up. This is a photo of one of the eldest members we have ever had. For those that never had the chance to meet her this is Sophie Wojihoski. I received an email from her niece on Nov. 17th that she had passed on Nov. 14th . I have personally know this lovely young lady for several years. I went on line to look for her obit and found it to be a very long one almost 2 pages I read so many things that I had never known about her. She was 94 years and 10 months old. She had lived through a very difficult childhood , having lost her father when she was 3 years old. She was one of three children. She lost her youngest brother when he was just a child by a gun incident. She had to go through the depression which we know was one of the hardest things this country has ever had to through. Sophie eventually married to Joseph Wojihoski and had 4 children . I won’t go into all of her remarkable accomplishments but She became a teacher . After getting her teaching degree she went on to get her Masters degree and also her doctorates degree. The things I remember about her most was she was hard of hearing and when she came to the meetings she always shut off her hearing aides. The other was she always carved with some of the dullest carving tools I have ever seen. She still turned out some of the most beautiful carvings I have ever seen. Sophie mostly carved on Cottonwood bark the last few years. Sophie stopped coming to the meeting about a year ago and had to go into a retirement home. They allowed her to continue carving right up to the end. They even gave her a rug to carve on and paint on. She was a first class lady.

One Of Our Greatest Contributors

Many Thanks For Their Support

Welcome To Another New Member

I want to welcome our newest member LeeRoy Burrell . I only had a chance to talk with LeeRoy for a few minutes the other day when he joined. The one thing I remember most was when he told me that he had 2 different birth certificates . Somehow there was a mix-up on how his first name was to be spelled. I never heard about anyone having that problem before. I sure hope it doesn’t mess up his retirement. LeeRoy seems to always have a smile on his face and is really wanting to learn how to carve. If he sticks around here for very long I’m sure he will do great. Welcome to the club LeeRoy.

Happy, Happy , Birthday

Darlene Henderson……………….Dec. 3rd

Larry Yudis……………………….Dec. 3rd

Bill Cox……………………………Dec. 4th

Angel Colon……………………….Dec. 9th

Jerry Lambert…………………….Dec. 10th

Bill Hunter…………………………Dec. 14th

Norman Tennis……………………Dec..16th

Ron Wasieleski…………………….Dec.22nd

Irv Olsen……………………………Dec. 29th

Hope You All Have a great Birthday

Letter To Frank

I got an Email from Frank Kik that he received from Darold Parkey . Darold had moved to Nevada a few years ago and has still remained a member. He said that he still carves every day and said that anyone that wants to see what he is up to can check out his website http://daroldswork.shutterfly.com/

Here is what Darold said. A guy in New Mexico just called and found my info on the internet in the Duneland (Website )listing. Since he found some of my carvings in a storage locker there(New Mexico). Turns out that I had given them( the carvings) to a friend here (in Nevada) who passed away and his family took his belongings to New Mexico where they live. Apparently the family put the carvings in a storage locker and the locker was later sold. Talked to him ( the guy in New Mexico) and I told him to enjoy them (Darold’s carvings) . I got a little confused reading this ,so I tried to make less confusing ,hope it worked.

Jim Smith Gave A Little Lesson

Last Tuesday Jim Smith told several of us about a Segment he watched on U-Tube about how to carve a miniature monk ( about 2” long) . He had cut out several pieces to practice on and gladly showed us his rendition. He then gave us ( the surrounding members that sit by him ) pieces to try and one that he had finished to use as an example. It’s no wonder why so many people try to get the seats adjoining his chair. It’s truly remarkable that our club has so many members that are so willing to teach and demonstrate for other members. Thanks once again Jim.

A Call To Norm

Was talking with my wife ( Gail ) the other night and told her that I hadn’t seen Norm Tennis for over four weeks and was wondering on how he was doing. The last time I saw Norm he told me that he was feeling very good and that he only had to have 2 more chemo treatments left to do. My wife said since your at your desk writing the Burl why don’t you give him a call. Many of the club members asked about him but seems they leave it up to me to call. I was truly concerned about Norm and held off calling because I didn’t want to bother him if he wasn’t feeling well. I bit the bullet and finally called. I greeted him with my normal greeting . How you doing you old Fart. He laughed and told me that he had been doing just fine till he got a treatment about a month ago that knocked his socks off. His doctor requested he took some time off to let his body rebuild and recuperate . He sounded very good on the phone and told me that he probably wouldn’t be at any meeting’s till January. He said that his son stops in on him every morning and evening. I told him we miss him and get well soon. I told him to call me if he needed anything and he said that his family has been caring for him and have been doing a great job. They watch over him like an old mother hen, which is fabulous.

Patterns This Month

My wife and I got inspired to go through our basement and try to get rid of many of the things that we hadn’t used in years and donate them to the resale shop Bethesda. It’s a local shop run by a charity group that resells all donated items to help out homeless people. Gail didn’t have all that much to donate but when I started going through my side of the basement. Well that was a whole different story.

I condensed my side by a half and still need to through one more time. Anyway what this is all about is I found numerous old magazines ( from 1980) that had several carving patterns that could be made from ¾ inch bass wood. This month I printed some of carousel animals that can be made form ¾ wood. Next month’s and a few of the following month’s I will print several patterns that join 3 pieces together to make some remarkable carving’s . The method they used saves you a lot of time by using your band saw instead of your knife. I hope you enjoy. I tried them and had fun.

Smile Awhile With Me

Some Christmas Funnies

What do you call a kid that doesn’t believe in Santa?

A rebel without a Claus.

Why is Santa so jolly?

Because he knows where all the naughty girls live.

What do you get when you eat Christmas decorations?

Tinselitis.

What do you call an Elf who sings?

A wrapper.

What do you get when you cross a snowman with a vampire?

Frostbite

What do snowmen eat for breakfast?

Snowflakes.

What do you call a snowman in the summer?

A puddle.

What do you get when you cross an apple with a Christmas tree?

A Pineapple.

Save A Little Money

For those of you that are able to get online and want to save a little money. Michael’s and Hobby Lobby both have their weekly ads on line every week. Both display weekly coupons for 30% to 40 % off. What I think makes Hobby Lobby a little better is the fact they don’t limit as many things that you can use the coupons for. Michaels is very restrictive. They don’t allow you to use on any books . Hobby Lobby doesn’t have that restriction. I usually print out 2 coupons every week so that the wife and I can both use. What the heck 40% off a good drawing book that normally costs $20 dollars ads up to a lot. I also buy a lot of basswood slices that have some bark still on. And I also buy pine cut out’s for bases.

2015 Club Show Raffle

The board of director’s decided for this year to once again do a club carving of a Friendship Staff to be raffled off at the show. Bruce Johnston and Bob Stevens together made up the numerous basswood blocks and drilled out the center holes. Each block measures 2”x2” x 3” tall. With a 5/8 “ hole in the center. I am carving the bottom of the staff ( the part that the rubber foot is attached to.) Jim Smith has once again agreed to carve the top of the staff with one of his great caricatures. Several of the blanks have been given out at the Tuesday meeting’s. We still have a lot more to give out to any member that wants to help out . All of the blocks will be glued together with a 5/8 “ dowel rod running through the center. We ask that when you finish your carving please put your name on one of the sides of the carving. It really doesn’t make a difference whether you are new to carving or not . We want the staff to represent the whole club. Some of you might not be able to pick up one of the blanks so if you are able make your block with the same measurements. Please when you get your carving finished turn them in to either Bruce Johnston or myself before April 1st next year. The last time the club did the staff carving I had the staff finished and the day before the show several people gave me their carvings. I had to hurry up and produce a matching cane to go with the staff. I get stressed out enough as it is so please turn them in when you get them finished. You are given several months so don’t put it off till just before April The carving will represent you so give it your best.